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Leave Your Treadmarks and Take a Walk on San Francisco's Sunday Streets

Walking on roads where feet don't normally tread -- that's part of the fun of Sunday Streets. A few times each summer, San Francisco shuts down a stretch of a heavily trafficked thoroughfare and opens it up to walkers and bicyclists. Last Sunday, the route ran through Golden Gate Park and down Ocean Beach. We braved the notoriously slow N-Judah so we could participate.

Industrious individuals lined the route selling their wares. We even saw one couple offering "free" advice for $1.

Metromint set up a tent along the route and treated walked to water flavored with mint. They even boasted chocolate flavored water -- definitely an acquired taste.

We decided to check out the Taraval Street Fair. The fair was a bit over hyped. There were a few small vendors and a stage with live music. This drummer was playing his heart out despite the small crowd.

We turned around and walked back toward Golden Gate Park. I was intrigued by this VW van with a pop-up top. Our friends assured us that these were really common back-in-the day among campers but I had never seen one before.

We decided to detour onto Noriega to seek out some ice cream. We passed these colorful faces along the way.We were hungry after all the walking we'd done and this pizza looked absolutely delicious. Still, we decided to stay on task and find our ice cream.

The cat burglar was on the prowl at the local pet store. Lock your doors, people!

At last, we arrived at Polly Ann's. They have over 40 exotic flavors of ice cream to choose from. Indecisive types can spin the wheel and let chance pick their flavor.

I tasted the Sesame but opted to buy the Sabra (orange chocolate) and Chocolate Chip. Yum! We continued on our way back toward the park and that's when the flora and fauna sightings began. We caught this black cat asleep in front of a garage.

We saw this sign in Golden Gate Park cautioning motorists to watch out for wildlife. What is this? A skunk? A beaver? It took me a while to realize that this was a raccoon. It's so obvious to me now.

The buffalo paddock in Golden Gate Park is always an unexpected treat. The majestic creatures were surprisingly close to the fence of the enclosure. We also caught a glimpse of a cormorant searching for its next meal.

Apparently, Frisbee golfers take the game very seriously. Just look at the skull on this guy's set of...what do you call the Frisbee equivalent of "clubs"?

At this point, Sunday Streets was starting to wind down and traffic was ready to invade the route. There were still some colorful bicyclists passing by though. I liked this hot pink bubble lady.There were also several people toting large speakers to share some mobile music with the crowd.

I was very impressed by this large solitary tree across from the de Young Museum.

We passed this lily pad and beautiful lone flower near the tail end of our walk. This marked the 6.5 mile mark of our Sunday Streets journey. We popped in to Pacific Catch on 9th and Irving for some well deserved sustenance before heading back home. What an invigorating afternoon.